Sara Juanita Jumping Eagle via Dakota Resource Council What are acceptable levels? Initial testing of Glendive’s water, which is drawn from the river, showed levels of benzene, a cancer-causing constituent of petroleum, well above levels considered safe for human health by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Results of subsequent testing released on Thursday showed that benzene levels had fallen to acceptable levels, and state regulators on Friday said an independent lab analysis confirmed the water was safe to drink after residents flushed their taps of any residual contamination. But some residents on Friday notified regulators that dark-colored matter was issuing from taps at or near the end of the flushing procedure, state environmental officials said. An examination of the material by the EPA showed it was sediment that built up in water pipes after several days of disuse and was unrelated to the oil spill, according to the Montana Department of Environmental Quality. The number of residents affected by the dark ooze was not immediately known. State and federal regulators advised residents to continue to flush taps and wash foreign material down the drain until the water ran clear. It remained unclear what caused the pipeline to rupture Saturday morning, spilling oil into one of Montana’s premier rivers. Responders have recovered more than 240 barrels of spilled petroleum, but cleanup efforts have been slowed by the pooling of oil beneath the layers of ice. Studies show rates of leukemia are higher in people chronically exposed to high concentrations of benzene, according to the American Cancer Society.
Posted on: Tue, 27 Jan 2015 03:48:52 +0000
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